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Message from Ralph Munro to Air for Several Weeks

Thu, 11/20/2008 - 3:40pm — Bert

[Correction: Ralph Munro's name is spelled without an e.]

According to Friends of the Waterfront, a message from former Washington State Secretary of State Ralph Munro will air for several weeks on at least one local radio station (MIXX 96). During his time in office, former Secretary of State Munro served on both the Capitol Committee, and the Capitol Campus Design Committee.

In the radio message, Munro commends the Olympia City Council for responding to the Citizens' Initiative for an Isthmus Park Feasibility Study. He urges the City Council to delay voting on the proposal to increase isthmus building height limits until all the facts from the study are in. He then urges Olympia Residents who want the facts (and want the Council to consider the facts) from a completed study before a Concil decision about the rezone (which would have such drastic impacts on park feasibility), to then contact the members of the City Council and let them know.

Again, the message is to contact members of the City Council to thank them for pursuing the Park Feasibility Analysis and urge them to wait to vote on the proposal to rezone the isthmus building height limits until all of the facts from the park study are in: until the Park Feasibility Analysis has been thoroughly and faithfully completed.

Comments

Ralph Munroe says: "... do the right thing by waiting for all the facts on the park option before making any decision to raise height limits."

Yeah, that sounds good to me.

Let the good people of the Council know that we need the facts - via a thorough analysis into the feasibility of a park option - to be completed prior to a Council vote on the Isthmus building height limit zoning changes!

1-- On Nov 17, Thad posted the following statement saying that the Council is no longer taking public comment regarding the rezone at the general email address, but we can still write to them individually:

You can no longer write the City Council about the rezone at the general City Council email addresses. You get a note back saying that since the public comment period is closed they are no longer doing what they usually do and forwarding whatever comes to that address to the individual Councilmembers' addresses. You can still write to them individually if you want to, at

2-- As always, and now more than ever, letters to the Olympian are important. I submitted one yesterday making the same points Ralph Monroe makes in his radio spot, and I will be sending a copy to each Councilmember individually.

It's just plain old common sense that the Council ought to wait for a vote on the rezone until the facts (from a thorough and completed study) are in.

Additionally, even if the study shows that it will take years to gain the necessary conditions for a park, that should not preclude the park option, nor should it weigh in the decision to rezone.

If the study finds adequate conditions, even in the somewhat distant future, for the creation of an expanded park space on the Isthmus (under whatever jurisdiction), then the rezone proposal should be denied.

The fact of the matter on this is that the people have spoken. The people of Olympia do not want a mixed-use condominium/retail super-structure on the Isthmus. It's just about time that our public officials wake up to reality. Wake up and smell the coffee!

I use email addresses that are stored in my mail program, the same ones listed above. The last time I emailed the council, 9 days ago, I sent the message to all of the above addresses: "cityhall" "citycouncil" and "councilmembers" all @ci.olympia.wa.us .

It worked for me then. But that was 9 days ago. And things can change quick these days.

I looked on the city website today for the group addresses to expediently and expeditiously email the entire council as a group. I didn't see them listed on the Council page.

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